Military Mobilization and State-society Interaction in Ming Dynasty China
For much of the Ming Dynasty(1368-1644),the chief form by which the state obtained military labor was the system of military households(军户).The military household was a hereditary designation requiring the provision of one able-bodied soldier at all times.Households belonging to the category developed a wide range of strategies to fulfill their obligation,including monetizing it and hiring a soldier from outside the household.Because the system required groups of kin to coordinate with one another,it encouraged the development of corporate lineages.This perspective reinforces existing research showing that the corporate lineage is not a timeless,eternal expression of Chinese culture but rather a historically contingent form of social organization.Military households also strategized to use their status as military households to gain advantages in broader social arenas.Their strategies correspond closely to the modern concept of regulatory arbitrage.
military mobilizationMing Dynastymilitary household(军户)garrison system(卫所)
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